Duty of Care - Fort Max&Rung Miniseries
by InnermostEnergon
Summary: A miniseries of Fortress Maximus/Rung ficlets and oneshots. Some are shippy, some aren't. Spoiler warnings at the start of each chapter.
1. Reverse Psychologist

**.**

**Ficlet Name**

Reverse Psychologist

**Summary**

A drunken Rung visits Fortress Maximus.

**Pairing**

Possible Rung/Fort Max, if you read into it that way.

**Warnings**

Clean. References with possible spoilers to MTMTE #6.

_**2,301 Words**_

* * *

><p>Rung always, always, always valued others' feelings before his own, especially those of his patient's. He knew he was upset at what Fortress Maximus had done to him and Whirl; but he had told the enormous mech that he forgave him, even if he wasn't sure he did, because he knew it would help Maximus heal. He knew it would do more harm than good to tell the honest truth. It was just a white lie, anyway, he would get over it eventually.<p>

But tonight, none of that is the case. After hearing the wrong name 99 times -and he had counted dutifully- he swore to himself that tonight, overcharged or not, he would care for himself first. Just this once, he would put himself first. And that started with what weighed on his processor every day - whether or not he truly forgave Maximus for nearly ending his life.

The cruel irony in it was that it's not so much his own life he was concerned about - but his patient's. If Rung was gone, all of his patients would no longer have a therapist. They didn't have a therapist while Rung was incapacitated, and that had done enough damage on it's own. But if he had perished, what would have happened to his patients? To Whirl, and Swerve, and so many others? Many of them relied on him as the only one they could trust. The only person they could_ feel_ in front of. The only friend they really had.

If Maximus had killed Rung that day, Rung would have let them all down. All of his patients would have relapses, and permanent mental damage. He did not care so much that he would have died; just that his patients, his friends, would have to live without him. And he didn't know if he could forgive Maximus for nearly causing all of that. He couldn't blame him entirely; he was deeply hurt, and he was having a psychotic episode. Rung's own ill thought out wording caused it. But nevertheless, Maximus was conscious and thinking - he was not having a flashback, and he knew the implications of killing Rung. He _still_ threatened it, and Rung could see in his eyes he honestly had meant it.

Rung paused before Maximus's hab suite door. The hab suite was actually a converted explosives storeroom made to look like a habitation room; given Maximus's size and instability, they had to make do with something larger...and something that could be locked from the outside. He lifted a shaking, woozy servo and touched the door - he suddenly felt doubt. He didn't want to do this. He was angry that Maximus had taken actions he knew could potentially devastate Rung's patients - but Maximus himself was a patient now, too. Wouldn't it make him a hypocrite if-

_snick_

The door had opened, interrupting Rung's drunken train of thought. He craned his head up to blearily look at Maximus's towering frame, and idly wondered how Maximus knew he was there even if he hadn't knocked yet.

"Rung? You're overcharged."

"Yes I- yes I am. How did you...how did you know I was at the door if I hadn't knocked yet?"

Maximus just stared at him for a moment. "Your footsteps are loud in a corridor that permits no-one but officers - and running into the occasional wall doesn't help."

"Oh."

Rung looked straight ahead, confused and dizzy. What was he here for again?

Oh yeah.

"You tried to hurt-...you almost hurt my patients, a lot."

"...excuse me, Rung?"

"the fact is Max I don't forgive you, I-you hurt them."

Maximus's optics widened, and blinked, not understanding. "...Rung? From the beginning?"

"You-tried to kill me. You were going to kill me. But if I die my patients don't have a th-...therapist. A friend. A reliable source of support and comfort. I don't know if...if I forgive you for that, Maxxy. I'm...I'm sorry I lied. I'm sorry I'm here. I'll leave."

Rung turned, and was stopped by an enormous hand taking his arm. "Wait, please- Rung...it's alright. You shouldn't forgive me. I thought of that when I was going to hurt you - when I hurt Whirl - but I didn't care. Garrus 9 and my injustices were more important. They were far more important. But you've taught me that nothing can be done to change the past. I was wronged terribly but I can't fix what happened by being angry at Prowl, or Rodimus, or ...anyone. And I'm trying Rung - for you, if no-one else. And I'll do whatever you need me to do in order for you to forgive me for almost taking that very thing away from your patients."

Rung made an odd face and collapsed against Maximus's hold, offlined by his overcharge crashing down on him. Maximus looked around the corridor, lifted the little mech into his arms, and carried him into his hab suite.

* * *

><p>Rung onlined feeling quite... poorly. He had remembered little of the night before, and that was usually a very bad thing for <em>any<em> mech, including Rung. Especially so when he recognized the deep blue paint and towering tank treads of quite possibly the most dangerous patient he had. Maximus had his back towards him, resting on the floor of his habsuite/chamber, focused on whatever was in front of him. He struggled to collect his memories of the night before - many mechs forgetting his name, be it accidentally, drunkenly or intentionally. He remembered feeling vaguely wronged, and he remembered making his way towards Maximus's hab suite lost in thought - something about concern for his patients? And then it hit him.

His thumb mic - the emergency recorder. It replayed the last two minutes of data it had recorded before his emergency offline, as a security feature, back to him. Including Maximus's speech.

What a_ fool_ he had been! He had nearly compromised the progress and safety of a patient for his own concern about something personal that _paled_ in importance. On top of that, he had done so hypocritically - he had spent many cycles convincing Maximus that letting go of his anger was the best possible course of action when absolutely nothing can be done about it any longer. It has long since passed and the only thing gained from looking back on history is to learn from previous mistakes. And here he was, doing the exact opposite. It was by sheer luck that Maximus had understood and did not hold it against him, or worse, relapsed from Rung's slip in judgement.

But now what should he do? He dimmed his optics to dark and lowered his systems to minimum, pretending to be offline again. He focused on his surroundings - he was laying in Maximus's berth, and he felt warm - Maximus had thrown a cover over him during his recharge. Fortress Maximus was engrossed in whatever it was he was doing - he could only see the back of him, but he didn't look tense, or angry. He did not look like a mech having a flashback or another psychotic episode. He seemed calm and contented. That was definitely a good sign - it meant he wasn't relapsing, or triggered.

Rung thought long and hard about his next words. He didn't want to lie again and pretend he didn't remember; surely Maximus would know better. He didn't want to be too casual, or too apologetic. For once he had no idea what to say.

Two breems later, thankfully, Maximus stepped in to put him out of his misery...sort of.

"Did the Nemesis -the original, this one-" _(he held up a manual with the specifications)_ "- have _one_ tractor beam, or two? I cannot tell if this part is a spare...it doesn't seem to be listed in the instructions."

_Oh, but Rung was so embarrassed._ He had pretended to recharge like a little sparkling and he honestly thought that Maximus had not noticed. First a drunken fool, and now a sober imbecile. He brightened his optics back to normal and let his systems run at idle capacity as he rested on the berth, unwilling to move. He allowed himself an expression of his embarrassment -he was acting like a sparkling already, why not go all 9 paces?- and pulled the cover over his head.

Maximus reacted unexpectedly - he laughed. _Oh_, but he_ laughed_. Rung made a momentary hypothesis in a psychological sense - he was sure now that Maximus must have taken something very important from their interaction the cycle before and Rung could only hope it was a healthy one.

"Max, I hope you forgive me if I overstep our current relationship, but- my dear friend, why you have just the nicest laugh. Promise me you will laugh again sometime soon?" He peeked over the covers, holding them just under his optics, and the enormous mech's smile grew across his face. It was unnerving, given he had not yet seen him smile very much at all, let alone so wide - but wonderful to see none the less. Progress. Delicious, tangible, visible progress. Nothing made Rung happier than to see it. He couldn't help but smile too. And then curiosity overwhelmed him.

"Maximus -if you feel comfortable indulging my curiosity, may I ask why you are in such a delightful mood this morning?"

"You, Rung. Your little outburst last night." Rung made an -_apparently particularly amusing_- face at Max. "Let me elaborate - I was reluctant to listen to you as a therapist because I honestly thought Prowl or Rodimus put you up to feeding me whatever slag would anesthetize me. But last night you proved to me that you legitimately have a _duty of care_ for your patients, one _you_ honor and uphold."

"But Max- didn't I prove to you that I put my duty of care before all else when I risked death to keep Whirl's information confidential?"

"Not exactly, Rung. Whirl told me the information I was digging for before I fired the gun. I hesitated to give you a chance to break your duty of care, to pressure you into releasing the information -but Whirl stepped in before I had a chance to wring it out of you. I had been convinced if Whirl hadn't said anything that you would have broken. I was wrong. I see that now."

"But that doesn't tell me what's got you in such high spirits, my friend."

"To elaborate further..." Maximus paused, looked at the model pieces in his servos, and mulled over his words for a few moments. Rung quietly sat up and folded his hands in his own lap, the cover wrapped around his shoulders. "To elaborate further..I had some time to think about the words you had chosen, and the action you took last night. You proved to me multiple things. Being angry at something won't change what happened, or make it any better - all it will do is cause me suffering. We had established that - but I didn't _believe_ you. I had mistaken being angry and refusing to forgive someone as the same thing. It's alright not to forgive, but it isn't alright to hurt myself and others by continuing to be enraged by it. Last night you _demonstrated_ that. You were no longer _angry_ with me for nearly killing you and Whirl - for risking your patients. You didn't show up at my door throwing punches. To do so would have hurt you and your patients _further_. You showed up at my door with words, trying to establish an understanding. You hadn't _forgiven me_."

"So...you understand and believe now that all this time, harboring your anger has only served to hurt yourself more? _Please,_ Maximus, you must understand - the only thing I have ever wished to do is to help you. You are entitled to your feelings - it's _okay_ to hurt, and to not forgive Prowl, or anyone involved for the terrible injustices they put upon you. But to continue with your courses of action will only torture you further."

"I understand that Rodimus wants you to focus first on preventing me from believing that hurting any more crew members will ever result in anything desirable. But I understand that _you agree_ with that course of action and that is the only reason that you have been focusing so long on suppressing my thirst for violence."

"Yes-_ye_s, that's _exactly_ it, Max. If you harm more crew members I will be barred -_anyone_ will be barred from speaking with you. You will be contained in high security until we happen to pass by Cybertron. That is the _very last_ thing I want. I would no longer be able to lend you my psychiatric assistance. So the very first course of action would be to prevent that from happening, Maximus - I had planned this before Rodimus had spoken with me."

"But it's true - you're _not_ just spouting lies you don't believe just to pacify me. I'm...I don't think I'm ready to talk about Garrus 9. I don't think I will _ever be_. But I am ready to continue with whatever the next course of action is, Rung. I trust you. I am in high spirits this morning, I have allowed myself this small moment of glee, because I have a glimmer of hope, Rung. For the first time in _years_ I have _hope_. Thank you."


	2. Golden Opportunity

**.**

**Ficlet Name**

Golden Opportunity

**Summary**

Rung wants to encourage his patients.

**Pairing**

Fort Max/Rung. Implied Tailgate/Cyclonus.

**Warnings**

None.

_**000 Words**_

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><p>Out of all the positive reinforcement methods Rung has tried, none of them have worked. He was at wit's end. He has tried direct praise, indirect praise, "trip rewards" or special time off-duty (granted to him for leverage from Ultra Magnus,) and he had even gone as far as offering energon goodies for progress. Whirl had stared at him, unblinkingly, unmovingly, until he put the energon goodie back in the case and away back in the drawer. He pretended as if the incident had never occurred whatsoever. Fortress Maximus had been more than a little offended by the gesture. Swerve had been slightly hurt, and whimpered at it like a kicked cyberpuppy.<p>

Rung had admitted defeat on the idea, his last patient appointment done for the day, and went to the medbay for a routine checkup. He risked asking their CMO for assistance, and his advice had been as aggressive as Rung had honestly expected it to be. Given that a wrench upside the helm wouldn't be a very effective _positive reinforcement_ tactic, he asked for an alternative, and had been passed to Ambulon, who passed him to First Aid, who passed him...to Tailgate. This strange, lengthy, quite frankly absurd line of action had lead him to this moment. Staring at the most ridiculous, bizarre object on the Lost Light.

A long roll of glittering golden stickers in the form of little stars.

Tailgate apparently had many of them, and he was glad to part way with as many rolls as Rung felt he needed. He purchased them on Hedonia, forgot why, relinquished them into a forgotten box under his berth and promptly forgot about them until Rung had appeared. This idea was worse than the energon goodie idea. This idea was the most preposterous, ludicrous idea Rung had ever heard. And on the Lost Light, only the craziest, most bizarre, abstract and _downright foolish_ ideas work.

"I...believe I will take a roll of these stickers to my office and try out your idea, Tailgate. Thank you for your generous contribution to my work, and to your comrades' well being."

"Oh, you're welcome Rung! And-..._promise me_ you won't say anything to anyone?"

"Of course Tailgate, whatever it is you wish to tell me will not reach _anyone_ else's audials. I promise."

Tailgate's visor brightened fractionally. "Well, so long as it _doesn't-_ I stick these to Cyclonus's monitor, sometimes, when he says or does something...nice. Or at least when he doesn't do something mean. He never mentions it and they always just disappeared - I thought he was throwing them away. But the other day I found a little paper journal on the desk with the stickers on the front page, collected together." Tailgate's visor had grown so bright it was almost painful to look into. "But shh- he's not supposed to know that I know! _Oh! Here he is!_ Bye, Rung!" Cyclonus had been standing a moderate few paces away since Tailgate had started talking. Rung made eye contact with the warrior and nodded once. Cyclonus hesitated, nodded back, and left with his little roommate chattering beside him. An understanding. He felt better knowing the warrior had at least a little faith in Rung's patient confidentiality, even if neither of the two were patients of his.

* * *

><p>Rung quietly regarded the roll in his hands, passing and idly greeting many mechs on the way back to his office. He mulled over the different ways he could offer them to his patients for a job well done. Many of his options would likely offend, hurt, or otherwise seem patronizing. Still focused on the roll in his hand, he keyed in his door code without looking and walked into his office, and right into an impressively large frame.<p>

"_Oh!_"

Rung blinked and looked up at Fortress Maximus startled, dropping the sticker roll. "I-I'm sorry, I should have been paying more attention." Before he had a chance to stoop down and pick up the dropped roll of stickers, Maximus had politely done it for him, and handed them back, staring at them with a mix of curiosity, confusion, and slight concern.

"I-_ah_, thank you...What were you here for, Max? Is there something I can help you with?"

Maximus hesitated, staring at the rolls, seemingly unable to keep his eyes off of them, occasionally flickering to make eye contact with Rung only as long as was polite. "I came back to your office to apologise for the way I reacted to the energon goodie. I realise you had the best intentions, I did not mean to get so upset. It was wrong of me to be so angry with you."

Rung smiled warmly and placed a hand gently on Maximus's lower arm - the only place Max had granted him permission to touch. The only place that didn't make him feel uncomfortable. "Thank you, Max. I appreciate and accept your apology. It was unthinking of me to offer something so nonsensical as a reward for honest, real improvement, and I must extend my own apology. I did not mean to come across so condescending."

"Forgive me for asking - but what are those for?"

"Oh, these are for patients!" Rung smiled again until he realised how insane he sounded. "That is to say- they will be. I'm not sure exactly how I could offer them without getting the same reactions as energon goodies. It was Tailgate's idea - I have no other ideas to my employ, and it's as good of an idea as any, especially when there are no others."

Maximus took the roll gently and looked them over, trying to think of some way to help his therapist and friend. As he removed one of the stickers on the roll to take a closer look, Rung took another and gently stuck it to the back of Max's servo. A strange feeling washed over him. He felt appreciation for these little golden stars of encouragement.

"...Rung, my friend, I don't think these will go over as badly as you seem to think they will. Perhaps if you pass them along to your patients just before they leave for the day, they will be well received. Thank you, and try not to fret too much about them. Goodnight, Rung."

* * *

><p>It was the next cycle, and he was armed with a roll of silly golden star stickers and tiny cards of paper for each one of his patients to collect them on. Rung was determined to make this idea work. His patients were going to feel encouraged and reinforced positively. He allowed himself a rare moment to vent some built up anxiety about his predicament. He vented in deeply, steeled his frame, and let it out of himself in a rare expletive. "<em>Slag!<em>" He nodded, contented that his anxiety levels had gone down significantly from the exercise.

"_FINALLY!_"

And his anxiety levels hit the roof.

"Some 'bot around here learned how to express himself properly! _About time_ you got with the program doc!"

Rung just about jumped out of his plating. He hadn't noticed the door opened and his first patient of the day, Whirl, had walked into his office. He is usually so clamorous about it that every office nearby came to him and complained. He had to soundproof his office to appease them. Who knew he could walk in _quietly_?

"Whirl! Please, have a seat so we may begin." Rung hid the star sticker roll in the same drawer the energon goodies were in.

Throughout their session, Whirl was as animated as usual, as vulgar as usual and as unfortunately loud as usual. He had trouble expressing himself without anything to cover raw emotion, so for now, Rung let him do what was comfortable as long as he was expressing his feelings and letting things off his chest. Apparently Trailbreaker and Skids got drunk and had glued him to his berth last night, so he spent most of his night freeing himself.

"How do you plan to confront the situation now, Whirl?"

"By doin' nothin." Whirl lazed in the seat haphazardly, casually, but Rung could see he was furious. He needed to tread carefully here or Whirl might very well do something regrettable.

"Nothing, Whirl? Nothing at all?"

"By doin' nothin, I deprive them of their -whatchamacallit, their-"

"-coarse disregard for your wellbeing and feelings?"

"Yeah, that. Their freakin' sick pleasure they get outta ruinin a perfectly good recharge cycle. Y'see, Rung -_olbuddyolpal_- by doin that, by not reactin' at all - they don't get nothin out of it. All that_ plannin'_ and _sneakin' around_ in my quarters - all built up to the moment _I walk into the bar_..." Whirl was choreographing the moment using his claws. " ..and they expect somethin' to start blowin up. _Cannons_ start firing, people're _screamin_, there's a_ minibot on fire_..."

"But you're not going to do any of that, are you?"

"Nope. I walk in, and there's silence. And nothin' happens. I get a drink, I sit down, and everything is like none of it ever happened. The best kinda revenge is the kind nobody ever saw coming."

"That's...very good, Whirl. No-one is hurt, you feel you've gotten your justice, and-"

"-and those two slaggin' scrap-shovelers are gonna be twitchin in their berths for weeks expectin' me to do somethin' about it. But nope. _Nothing_."

"-yes, and that, too. I must say I am very proud of your progress, Whirl. You have found a non-violent solution to something that has upset you, and made peace with it. As our session is now over, unless you have anything else you would like to share, I must bid you goodbye to prepare for my next patient."

"Yeah, later, Rang. Thanks fer yer understandin' and yer-_uh_. You aren't_ actually_ going to try that _again_ are you?"

Rung had the energon goodie drawer open, and he felt anxiety build again. No. This was just another solution to try, and if he tried hard enough, it should not end up as badly as the last few tries. He pulled out the star sticker roll and a card with Whirl's name on it. The card said 'Progress Stickers' and had five circles on it. When he had filled the card, he would get a new one. He placed a shiny golden star sticker on the card and handed it to Whirl wordlessly.

"What the slag?"

"They're for encouragement, Whirl. You get a star to collect every time you make some progress."

"Oh, gee, thanks _Dung_, I feel so frikkin' _encouraged_. See, this is my _encouraged face._" Whirl stared at Rung, his single optic unblinking and unchanging. "I think I'll go pick some flowers and hand 'em out to all the slagheads in the bar to earn some more freakin stars."

The therapist suppressed a sigh as Whirl turned and left. His next patient was Fortress Maximus, since Swerve's psychiatric attendance was voluntary and had been scheduled more sparsely, and something inside him thanked Primus for that. He wasn't sure he could handle Swerve right now, but he found himself craving Fortress Maximus's company.


	3. Golden Opportunity PART 2

.

**Ficlet Name**

Golden Opportunity

**Summary**

Rung wants to encourage his patients, but things have gone a little out of hand.

**Pairing**

Fort Max/Rung.

**Warnings**

None. Fluff ensues.

_**1,937 Words**_

* * *

><p>It had been many cycles since Rung had first introduced the shiny golden star stickers as a means of encouragement. Unlike energon goodies or praise, these stickers were tangible; one could look at them and find solace on how many there were. The concept of progress was more easily grasped when one could literally grasp it, it seemed. For a while, Rung's patients were reinforced in a positive way, and for a while, they were happy. Even Whirl. In fact, once warmed up to the idea, Whirl was one of his patients most proud of his growing sticker collection - that is to say, most proud of his growing psychological progress. But these days, his patients are becoming disappointed in themselves for not acquiring as many stickers as they think they should be. Rung's successful positive reinforcement tactic has been turned around on it's head.<p>

Rung vented a sigh and let his helm clink against the bar table. He wish he could go back to energon treats. He wished _those_ would have worked. He wished he was a better psychiatrist, or there was another on the ship that he could trade ideas with. Being the one and only go-to for mental health on an entire ship full of idiots -_well maybe idiots was a little strong_- was very hard on him. A lot of the time he felt very overwhelmed. He was the one bot anyone could go to for safe keeping, to vent, to cry on - but he had no mech like that. He mused to himself that as a psychiatrist he shouldn't have to - that he could just explain away his own problems, but it just didn't work like that. Maybe it worked that way for others in the profession, but not him, no.

He considered Fortress Maximus a dear friend - after his drunken incident, he became very close to his patient. Probably closer than was healthy. Nevertheless, he couldn't go to Max for emotional support - it was supposed to be the other way around. Another failure as a psychiatrist to add to his growing pile. While his patients were eagerly working on their pile of gold stars, Rung was overwhelmed by his growing failures. He found himself thinking fondly of Maximus often. Too often. Too fondly.

Fortress Maximus was ideal. He was strong. He could protect Rung and his scrawny, feeble body. Max was patient, quiet, and if Rung dared to admit it to himself, he was handsome. This would all be lovely and perfectly acceptable things to feel about another mech if that mech wasn't _Rung's psychiatric patient. _Patient/doctor relationships were highly frowned upon, especially in the world of mental health. He would have confessed his feelings long ago if he didn't have those facts looming over him.

Even with the growing oppressive force of disapproval and taboo practices, Rung couldn't help but crave Maximus's company, and his attention. Max was one of the only mechs on the Lost Light to really care about Rung's own health or well-being. He never mispronounced his name deliberately or accidentally, he always noticed if Rung was feeling under the weather that day, and he always noticed if Rung was low on energy.

He heard someone sit beside him at the booth he'd tucked himself away in.

"Hello, Rung."

The psychiatrist lifted his head and gave the best smile he could to his patient and friend, Fortress Maximus. He felt both relieved and dejected that the mech had come to sit beside him. "Hello Max. What can I help you with?"

"Oh, nothing, I was just-...Rung, are you alright?"

The words struck a chord in Rung. His eyes began to well up, and his glasses became foggy. "I-, well I..."

Maximus's optics grew in alarm. Oh, goodie. This is precisely why he couldn't go Max for support. Upsetting his patients was the exact opposite of what Rung was supposed to do. "Oh, Maximus please don't look at me that way - I'm alright, really. It must be the highgrade."

"Rung, that's engex-free energon. You don't drink often, especially not alone hidden in the corner of the bar. It's_ not_ the highgrade - or_ lack thereof_. Please, tell me what's on _your_ mind?"

Rung let out a shaky sigh as Maximus gently pulled his hands into his. Maximus's hands felt so warm and gentle encompassing his own. "I'm just- a little overwhelmed, that's all. Once my patients become a little less dangerously eager about little golden stars, I'll be fine again. Please, Maximus, don't worry about me."

"But I_ will_ worry about you. Nobody else does." The truth in the words just made his optics spill over. Oh, please not now, and please not in front of a patient. Not in front of Fortress Maximus. He was not having a friggin' emotional collapse in front of Fortress friggin' Maximus!

"Do I have permission to touch you?"

"Excuse me? Maximus you have- you have_ always_ had permission to touch me." The psychiatrist removed his glasses and rubbed his optics gently, trying to compose himself.

"I mean, do I have permission to hug you, Rung?"

Rung blinked a few times at his friend and nodded once. That sounded like a nice, platonic interaction that couldn't possibly lead to disaster. Maximus wrapped his enormous arm around Rung and lifted him into his lap, against his chest, and encouraged Rung to lay his head against him with a gentle hand against his helm. _Oh_, how he was wrong. This could be disastrous. But it just...this felt so nice. Max was so warm, and tender with him. He treated him like precious glass. Like something that truly mattered. Rung's thoughts got the best of him, and he leaned into Maximus's enormous size, and his growing care, and let himself break apart.

Maximus stood slowly, retrieved his friend's glasses from the table, and strode from the bar. Rung could care less where they were going at this point, as long as they didn't pass anyone along the way, which it looked like they wouldn't. It looked like Max was making sure they wouldn't - Rung glanced at the hallway signs here and there and realised the mech was taking him along a route that avoided interaction. They arrived at Maximus's personal "hab suite" -an emptied explosives storage chamber that was lockable from the outside- and Rung was set down on the edge of Max's berth. Max knelt in front of him and held Rung's hands once again.

"Do you wanna talk about it, Rung?"

"N-...no, I don't think I do, Max. Please understand it's not that I don't trust you -or that I don't care about you- I just think it would be detrimental at this point to _relive_ it all."

"I understand Rung. Do you want me to hug you again?" Rung thought long and hard about the offer, and the implications therein. As long as it was platonic, it wasn't as if it could harm their relationship any further - and it might help Maximus out of his shell a little more. He seemed to be more open to physical touch than he has been since Rung was assigned as his mental caretaker.

"If you're comfortable with that Maximus, I think I would really like another hug. If you don't mind."

Max smiled and sat himself onto the berth, leaning himself comfortably against the wall, and brought Rung back into his arms, able to envelope him almost entirely with the width and size of himself -and considering the smallness that was Rung. For a normal mech, Rung was very small. It felt good to hold him this way. It made Max feel in control, and it made him feel needed. It made him feel useful. Helpful. He had no assigned duties, since Rodimus trusted him with nothing at all, and here, on this aptly named ship, he had no purpose. But with Rung in his life, and guiding him to recovery, he at least felt better than he has in ages. Rung made him feel like there was there was hope somewhere in this dark, twisted reality.

It was warm here, in Maximus's space, and so comfortable. He could lie in Max's arms forever. But this was less of a hug, more of a cuddle, he realised, and he needed to stop. For Max's sake. Rung lifted his head and smiled at Maximus, closing his eyes for a moment to blink some tears away. Max returned his smile and lowered his voice to a soft timbre, matching the energy and the atmosphere. "Do I get a gold star for this?"  
>Rung thankfully saw the humor in it and his smile grew as he laughed. An idea came to Max's head. A preposterous, ludicrous idea. He remembered his friend's words - on the Lost Light, only the most bizarre, abstract and <em>downright foolish<em> ideas work.

Maximus gently cupped Rung's helm, leaned in, and pressed a kiss against his lips. Rung stiffened and vented in sharply. Max drew back, let his hand free and stuttered at the look of shock on Rung's face. Those beautiful glowing blue orbs had widened into_ planets._ Slag.

"You kissed me. Max, you just _kissed me_."

"I-I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me, it was just an impulse thing-"

"You get a gold star if you kiss me again." Oh this was _so wrong_. It just slipped out. He never should have said that. This was so wrong. Oh, the hundred, million, trillion things wrong with this-

Lips were on his again, tender and warm.

-The hundred, million, trillion things wrong with this_ could wait_. This felt way too right to be wrong. This felt too right to be halted by the opinions of upper class Towers mechs that judged what one should and shouldn't do as a medical professional. Rung wrapped an entire arm around Maximus's helm and pressed further into the kiss than he ever should have. He was feeding into what was bound to be toxic - but he couldn't pull away. If this is what it felt like to be poisoned, he never wanted the antidote.

As it turned out, neither did Maximus. Max kissed him until he was breathless. Pulling away delicately, Max vented against Rung, and wrapped his arms tighter around his friend. He never, ever wanted this feeling to leave. He never wanted Rung to leave. "Rung, Rung I think I-" Rung put his lips on Max's again to quiet him. "Please, I don't want to face that right now. Please, I don't want to face the implications. This is so, so selfish of me. So wrong of me. I'm your psychiatrist and I- I don't want to realise the toxicity of what we've just got ourselves into. Please, I just want to enjoy this. Please let me be selfish, Maximus. Let me be selfish with you."

Max nodded and pressed an overly warm kiss against Rung's cheekbones. He used his thumb and his lips to wipe away the teary residue on Rung's face, even as more trickled down from his eyes. If this was what it felt like to be wronged by Rung, he never wanted things to be right. "Please be selfish with me."


End file.
